''Death End Request'' (stylized ''Death end re;Quest'') is a

role-playing video game A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immers ...

developed by

Compile Heart is a Japanese video game developer A video game developer is a broad term for a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one pers ...

and published by

Idea Factory is a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded by former Data East employees in October 1994. A division of the company makes otome game An , is a story-based video game that is targeted towards women. Generally one of the goals, besi ...

. It was released for the

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...

in Japan in April 2018 and worldwide in February 2019, for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for ...

in May 2019, and for

Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a tablet that can either be docked for use as a home console or used as a portable device, making it a ...

in April 2021. A sequel, ''

Death End Request 2 ''Death End Request 2'' (stylized as ''Death end re;Quest 2'') is an hybrid Japanese role-playing and visual novel video game developed by Compile Heart and published by Idea Factory. The game released worldwide for Microsoft Windows and PlaySt ...

'', was released in the same regions and platforms across 2021 and 2022.

Gameplay and premise

The game is played from two separate character's perspectives; Arata Mizunashi and Shina Ninomiya. Both characters had previously worked together as video game programmers a year prior for a

virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), e ...

MMORPG A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a character (of ...

called "World's Odyssey", until development was halted due to an unexplained disappearance of Shina. After a year passes, Arata stumbles upon access to the game and is shocked to find that the game's servers are still on, and Shina is trapped within the game with partial

amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...

. The two learn that Shina is trapped in the virtual reality game until she finishes the game herself, which is complicated by the fact that the game was unfinished, and has been apparently hacked and altered by a third party as well. The gameplay is split into two parts. Shina's portions are played as a traditional JRPG with

turn-based In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based. Real-time Real-time games have game time progress cont ...

battles. Arata's portions are played as a

visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...

. The player is forced to continually switch between the two, with the visual novel segments often used to unlock clues or remove barriers that are holding up progress in the RPG portion, and vice versa. In both portions, decisions with multiple options are often presented to the player. Options have consequences, with many leading to instant game over screens or leading to alternate game endings.

Development

The game was first teased as early as June 2017, when developer

released a brief video which alluded to a game titled ''End Request''. The game was officially announced in ''

Weekly Famitsu formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the f ...

'' the following week, as the next entry in Compile Heart's ''Galapagos RPG'' series of games, which also includes ''

Fairy Fencer F is a 2013 fantasy role-playing game under Compile Heart's Galapagos RPG brand for the PlayStation 3 and Windows. The game uses a modified version of ''Hyperdimension Neptunia'' battle system. The Windows version was released on August 4, 2015. ...

'', '' Omega Quintet'', and '' Fairy Fencer F: Advent Dark Force''. In June 2018, at the yearly

Anime Expo Anime Expo, abbreviated AX, is an American anime convention held in Los Angeles, California and organized by the non-profit Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA). The convention is traditionally held annually on the first ...

announced an English localization with a 2019 scheduled release date. While initially just released on the

, a Microsoft Windows release on

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizat ...

was also released in 2019, and a

version was later released across 2020 and 2021. A sequel, ''

'', was released on PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows via Steam in 2020, and was released on

in 2022.

Reception

The game received mixed reviews from critics. ''RPGSite'' praised the game for being a solid entry and starting point for a new IP by Idea Factory, that the mixing of '' Neptunia''-like anime tropes with a more serious story like ''Death End Requests story created some strange tonal shifts, and mused that it would have ultimately been a better visual novel that RPG. Similarly, ''Hardcore Gamer'' noted that the JRPG segments were of a good quality, and that the visual novel segments were interesting, but that the two contrasting gameplay segments didn't blend together well, and it felt like being forced into moving back and forth between two entirely different games. Conversely, ''Digitally Downloaded'' strongly praised the game's structure, feeling that the two segments worked well together in keeping the player engaged in the overall story. The game received a 8/8/8/7 1/40rating from ''

Famitsu formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the ...

'' in Japan.

References

{{reflist 2019 video games Japanese role-playing video games Visual novels Compile Heart games PlayStation 4 games Nintendo Switch games Video games about video games Video games about virtual reality Video games developed in Japan Video games featuring female protagonists Video games set in Japan Video games set in 2017 Windows games Idea Factory games Single-player video games